Good afternoon, everyone – and welcome to our Department's kick-off event for International Education Week.

As we get started, I want to thank Maureen McLaughlin and her staff, for their dedicated work on international affairs here at the Department – and for helping pull together this event and the week's activities.

In what seems to have become an annual ritual, I'm here again today to report on the state of education in America. What I can tell you after nearly five years in Washington is that the public narrative that you hear inside the Beltway and online doesn't reflect the reality I see in classrooms and schools all across America.

It is always important to me, and I always look forward to the opportunity to address the National HBCU Conference. This year in particular we are at a challenging, pivotal moment in supporting both the enduring and the evolving role of HBCUs.

Just four days from now, Republicans on Capitol Hill are threatening to shut down the government.

It's a treat to be here at Castle Park Middle School and to hear about Chula Vista's fantastic Promise Neighborhood program.

Today, we're wrapping up a five-day bus tour of the Southwest and West. I want to tell you about what I saw—and how the transformation of Castle Park Middle School is a beautiful example of what I learned.

Thank you, Hugh [Price]. It's a special honor to be introduced by someone who has been a leader and innovator in improving education and in tearing down the national shame of Jim Crow. I know how personal this anniversary is to you, since you served as a marshal in the March on Washington. It's an absolute privilege to be here with you, and so many other distinguished leaders this morning.